


Silver Bells

by StoriesbyReese



Category: Agent Carter (TV)
Genre: Christmas Fluff, F/F, Fluff, L&L Secret Santa 2020, a little hint of naughty, lots of fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:14:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,257
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28318041
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StoriesbyReese/pseuds/StoriesbyReese
Summary: Peggy is sent on a mission and Angie gets busy with work. Christmas is inching closer and closer, but neither is sure if they'll get the chance to spend it together.
Relationships: Peggy Carter/Angie Martinelli
Comments: 6
Kudos: 27
Collections: L&L Secret Santa 2020





	Silver Bells

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Frassington](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Frassington/gifts).



> Merry and Happy Christmas! 
> 
> This is a gift fic for my girl Sass. Hope you enjoy! 
> 
> Hope everyone enjoys and has a wonderful day! 
> 
> ~Reese

It had been a wonderfully long day spent with loved ones and lots of amazing food. The day had started with Peggy Carter being awoken by feathery touches and playful nips and kisses. She let herself indulge in the sensations for a few moments before finally opening her eyes to find Angie Martinelli’s smiling face looking back at her. Reaching out for Angie’s face, Peggy smiles warmly as she gently caresses Angie’s cheekbone with the pad of her thumb. They exchange good mornings, and a soft but lingering press of lips, before forcing their naked bodies out of their warm bed to prepare for the day. After a shared shower, Peggy just managed to finish her tea and a single triangle of marmalade covered toast before Angie was shoving her winter apparel into her arms and rushing her out the front door of the home they’d managed to turn Howard’s penthouse into. They were meeting Angie’s parents, brother, soon to be sister-in-law and her little girl, for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade.

After the parade everyone headed back to the Martinelli home for a day spent playing games, listening to recorders, and of course eating. Thanksgiving was still a new concept to Peggy, she didn’t need a special day to remind her of how grateful she was to have Angie in her life, but it was nice to have a day in which she could openly express that gratitude. When they finally returned to the penthouse that night, they’d been sent home with so many leftovers that Angie’s brother actually had to help them carry it all up. After putting everything away the two women collapsed onto the sofa in the living room, still too full to really move. Angie curled into Peggy’s side with a happily contented sigh, and Peggy smiled as she wrapped her arms around her girlfriend. They were both dozing comfortably like that when the phone started ringing. Peggy, much to Angie’s delight, ignored it the first time. But fifteen minutes later it was ringing again, and with a bothered sigh Peggy got up to answer it. She’d barely gotten the word hello out of her mouth when Chief Flynn, Thompson’s replacement, was bellowing at her about being unreachable. Peggy argued back that it was her off week and she was spending the holiday with loved ones, only to have Flynn argue back that she wasn’t even American. If she and Howard didn’t get their little project off the ground soon, Peggy was going to start causing harm to her co-workers. 

“English?” Angie questions when Peggy finally comes back into the room. 

Peggy sighs softly. “I’m sorry darling. Something has come up and I need to go out of town for a few days.” 

“It’s alright, Peggy.” Angie reassures as she stands and walks over to the woman she loved. “You go put the bad guys in their place. Just be careful and come home as soon as you can.”

“I’ll do my best, darling.” Peggy promises as she pulls Angie close to kiss her before heading upstairs to pack. 

Angie has gotten used to Peggy needing to leave at a moment’s notice. It’s just one of those things she’s had to learn to accept because she chose to make a life with the woman she loved, and the woman she loved just happened to be a super spy. So that night, as they waited on Peggy’s cab, Angie kissed her English goodbye in a way that would leave a lasting impression, a reminder of what she had to come home to. 

This past spring Angie had finally landed her first professional acting gig. She was a minor character in an off-Broadway play that had only run for about three months, but what a hell of a three months! It had given her experience and confidence that she used to get her second professional gig. She was playing Mrs. Martha Cratchit in a production of A Christmas Carol, which kept her busy, as did helping out with the Christmas pageant of her brother’s soon to be stepdaughter. She missed having Peggy around the house, running lines with her, coaxing her into singing with her, and teaching her whatever choreography she was learning. Peggy had called to check in for the first few days she was gone, but as she got deeper into her case, and with performances starting for Angie, they kept missing one another. Poor Ana Jarvis has become something of a go between, taking messages and passing them on when she could. 

As Christmas got closer and closer Angie figured she’d better get a tree, a small one, something she could manage to get home herself, before there was nothing left but half dead twigs. She went to a lot near their building and looked around for a good half an hour before picking the one she liked best. She carried the bundled little tree home and set it up in the corner of the living room on a sturdy table, near the window. Mr. Fancy had offered to deck the whole place out for Christmas last year, but she and Peggy had insisted they wanted to do it themselves. They had accumulated a small box full of decorations, which Angie pulled out of their closest, and set on the floor beside the tree. She was hoping Peggy would be home for Christmas, so she waited to decorate. But with each passing day it seemed more and more unlikely that Peggy would make it home in time, so Angie started trimming the tree when she had a free moment. She would save their stockings for when Peggy did get home because they still hadn’t settled the whole fireplace vs end of the bed debate.

Meanwhile Peggy had gotten herself into a bit of a jam and was trying like hell to get herself out of it. Her case had originated in California, which had only been slightly more awkward than she’d expected it to be, given the fact that she’d rejected Daniel’s desires for a romantic relationship the last time they’d worked together. Peggy was almost grateful when the case took her overseas. As bureau chief, Daniel couldn’t come along, so Peggy had made agreements to meet up with an old war buddy. Tensions between the West and Russia were on the rise, leading to conflicts in Berlin, which is of course where she needed to be. It wasn’t until she was trying to make her way through some of the smaller villages that she realized just how close to Christmas they were getting. Peggy loved her work, despite all of the crap she had to deal with, her work was important, and she was damn good at it, one of the best. But at times like this, watching from the shadows as people gathered with their loved ones to celebrate the season, she couldn’t help but feel resentment over being so far from her home. Home was no longer a place for Peggy, it was a person, it was Angie, and all she wanted was to get back to Angie. Waiting for their last target to appear, Peggy wants to yell at Sergeant Fury and his endless humming. Nick didn’t seem to be immune to the Christmas atmosphere despite his hard-edged attitude, because he’d shifted from humming jazz and blues tunes, to Christmas carols, and despite herself Peggy was soon singing along to ‘I’ll be Home for Christmas’. Peggy had wanted so badly to be there for Angie’s opening night, to see her on stage, to celebrate afterwards and tell her how proud she was of her. She’d wanted to pick out a tree and argue over where stockings were meant to be hung, and to keep her promise to teach Mrs. Martinelli how to make a Christmas pudding. Peggy sighed, she wanted to be home for Christmas. 

The production had been a hit, and everyone was going to get together after the final performance on Christmas Eve to celebrate. Finding a space for a private party on Christmas Eve in New York wasn’t an easy task, but Angie had a friend with a pub who was more than willing to let her use the space. It would be a safe place for the kinds of people the theater crowd consisted of, mixed company one could say, of people like Angie and not like Angie. After the final curtain and all the bows were taken, the cast piled into cabs to start an evening of merriment. It did not take long once everyone started rolling into the pub for the party to get started. Angie made her way to the bar to thank Francis, her friend, for offering up his pub, but it took a while. Everyone wanted to stop her for hugs, to thank her, wish her a Merry Christmas, and let her know how much they’d loved working with her. 

It's on her second attempt to make it to the bar that Angie finally succeeds in reaching her friend, who teases her about being the life of the party. She thanks him for letting them have it here and he tells her, “You can thank me by grabbing some more schnapps from the back room.” Angie agrees easily and as she walks away Francis smirks. 

Stepping into the back room Angie reaches for the pull string that will turn on the light. As soon as she can see she starts scanning the boxes, crates, and shelves for the schnapps. The music from the pub drifts down the long hallway to the back where the storeroom is, and Angie can’t help but sing along. Her voice is soft, almost a whisper, not that she’s sure why she’s singing softly. She’s fairly sure there aren’t any living creatures back here to be bothered by it. At least she hopes there aren’t any living creatures back here, Francis run a clean tight ship, but that’s never stopped a New York City rat before. 

Just as Angie steps around a large industrial shelf full of beer bottle crates, condiments, peanuts and pretzels, a voice calls out, “Looking for these, darling?” 

Angie squeals before covering her mouth, her bright blue eyes wide, her heart racing. It takes a moment for her brain to register what she’s seeing. Peggy in a red dress with a low neckline and high hem, perched on a crate, legs crossed, holding a bottle of schnapps in both hands. Her hair is up in curls, her lipstick is bright red, as are her fingernails, and her dark eyes sparkle with amusement. Moving her hand from her mouth to her chest, Angie can feel her heart thumping against her palm. “English! Are you tryin’ to give me a heart attack?” Then it hits her, really hits her, and Angie gaps. She’d convinced herself she wouldn’t be seeing Peggy for Christmas and now here she was right in front of her. “Peggy! You’re home!” 

“I am.” Peggy nods as she sets the bottles down and slides off the crate. She closes the space between herself and Angie and smiles, “You were wonderful, darling. I’m so proud of you, Angie.” 

“You saw the show?” Angie asks as she leans into Peggy’s touch when her girlfriend reaches up to cup her face. 

“Most of it.” Peggy replies. “I saw you and that’s all that matters to me.” 

Angie wraps her arms around Peggy, drawing her in for a kiss before resting her forehead to Peggy’s with a soft sigh. “Let’s go home, English.” 

“What about your party, darling?” Peggy replies, her voice just as soft as she holds Angie close. As soon as she’d completed the mission, Peggy reached out to Howard to get her home as soon as possible. On the flight over she wrote her report, and then asked Jarvis to deliver it for her with a note saying she’d be in after the holiday to debrief. She rushed home to shower and dress, stepping out of the building just as Jarvis pulled up to drive her to the theater. A few questions to the right people helped her find out what the plans were for after the show, and she ran Francis from the lobby of the theater to ask if he would do her a favor. He was more than willing to help her with surprising Angie privately. 

“You’ve been gone for weeks, Peg.” Angie replies, her voice a mix of relief that Peggy was home and a whine at wanting to be alone with her. “I just really want to take my Christmas present home and open it.” 

Peggy smirks as she plays with a strand of Angie’s hair. “Am I the present?” 

“What do you think, English?” Angie teases before kissing Peggy once more. 

Peggy does convince Angie that just slipping out would be bad form. She wanted to leave these people with a good impression of her for future opportunities, Peggy had said. So, they made the rounds for a bit, making sure to once again thank Francis, and then they left for home. Angie liked to see for herself that Peggy was fine after missions, needing to reassure herself more than anything, that Peggy had come home to her safe, sound, and in one piece. 

As soon as they get home Peggy wants to head straight up to their bed, but Angie grabs hold of her hand once they’ve shed their coats and shoes at the door. “We can’t head up yet, English.” She tells the slightly confused woman trailing behind her. Hadn’t Angie been the one in a hurry to get home and get her naked? Angie’s first stop is their radio, which she turns on, filling the room with softly crooned carols. “We have to hang our stockings first.” 

Despite the delay in what Peggy really wanted to do, she couldn’t help but smile a warm smile full of love for this woman. Angie truly was her bright star, the light in the darkness of this world, the focal point that got her through and brought her home no matter how bad things got. Having Angie in her life, getting the chance to love her, and be loved by her, was the greatest gift Peggy had ever received and she would always be thankful for her. “The tree looks lovely, darling.” 

Angie beamed, but for a moment her smile dimmed just a little. “I wanted to wait for you but…” 

Peggy smiles and holds out her hand for Angie’s. Before her mad dash to make it to the theater in time to see Angie, she had placed several wrapped gifts under the tree. Peggy reaches for one in particular which she holds out to Angie with a loving smile. “Open this one now, my darling.”

One might think that Angie Martinelli was a tear into a present with gleeful abandoned type of girl, but she wasn’t. Angie treated gifts with a kind of kindhearted reverence that amazed Peggy, warming her heart and soul. Carefully tearing away the red and white paper Angie found herself holding a pretty wooden box with a beautiful Christmas scene on the lid. “It’s beautiful, Peggy.” 

“Open it, love.” Peggy says, her voice warm and soft, her accent just a little thicker than normal because she was being completely open and vulnerable with the one person on the planet who got to see the real her. 

Angie undid the small golden latch on the front of the box and opened its lid carefully. Inside, nestled into soft red velvet, were two silver bells with each of their names engraved on them. They were the most beautiful things Angie had ever seen, and as she delicately ran her finger along the beautiful script of their names, tears gathered under her lashes. “Oh Peggy.” 

Reaching out, Peggy gently wipes away her love’s tears. “Let’s start a new tradition, darling. These will be the very last things we add to the tree, and we will always do it together, no matter what. Even if you’ve had to do the tree up on your own again, these little bells, we will hang together.” 

There’s a soft sniffle as Angie nods. “I like that idea, English.” She leans forward and kisses Peggy sweetly before removing the tiny bell with Peggy’s name on it and hands it to her. Angie giggles softly as the little bell rings a pretty little note. “Oh, gosh, Peggy, I just love them!” 

“I knew you would.” Peggy is beaming with joy as she watches Angie. There is also a hint of a sly smile on her painted lips as she wonders if Angie noticed the box was big enough to add bells to someday, if they ever chose to expand their little family. 

After hanging their Christmas bells and their stocking on the fireplace mantel, Peggy finally giving in on their placement because dancing sugar plums were not the things she was thinking of and having Father Christmas invading their bedroom while she acted on the thoughts she was having was rather appalling, the couple headed upstairs to their shared bed. Despite their weeks apart, they took their time in undressing each other. Tonight, was not a night for rushing, it was a night of rejoicing and expressing tender emotions and savoring what they shared together. It was also a night of quiet reassurances that Peggy was alright as Angie explored every inch of her love’s body for even the smallest of hurts. She came across some bruises, but nothing that needed stitches, or anything that would leave another scar behind. 

They spent several hours drawing each other's names out in deep trembling whispers and moaning shouts with fingers and lips, teeth and tongues, before collapsing from blissful exhaustion into one another's arms beneath the duvet. When morning properly rolls around, Angie moans from both the wonderful soreness she feels in her body, and slightly from annoyance after glancing at the clock. 

“I promised Ma I’d be at morning mass.” Angie groans as she presses her face into Peggy’s neck and takes a deep breath, humming pleasantly at the scent of Peggy after sex. 

“We’ll blame my protestant heathenism and bring her something expensive from Howard’s wine closest.” Peggy replies as she holds Angie tightly against her own body. She allows herself to really enjoy this moment of peace and even says a meaningful prayer of thanks for the woman in her arms. Then she slips her hand between Angie’s thighs, and Angie bites her shoulder, and if they’re lucky they’ll make it to Angie’s parents in time for dinner. 

They exchanged and open gifts in their dressing gowns and nothing more before sharing a shower and finally getting dressed. Angie’s mother knows Peggy’s been gone since Thanksgiving, and is one of the very few who knew the truth of what Peggy did, so she wasn’t to cross with them. Mrs. Martinelli loved Peggy and was just happy to have her home safe and sound to spend Christmas with. 

After the madness of the day has settled and everyone’s settled in to watch it snow and recover from all the food they’d eaten while enjoying Mr. Martinelli’s gift of a new television set, Angie reaches for Peggy’s hand and laces their fingers together while resting her head on Peggy’s shoulder. She sighs happily before kissing Peggy on the cheek and saying, “Merry Christmas, English.” 

Peggy presses a kiss to Angie’s hair and closes her eyes. “Happy Christmas, my darling.”


End file.
